'All Others' Edges Union Rags as Derby Future Pool 2 Favorite

Mar 4, 2012

A busy final day in the second of three betting pools in Churchill Downs’ 2012 Kentucky Derby Future Wager (“KOFW”) ended with the “All Others” (#24) betting interest narrowly edging individual choice Union Rags (#23) to emerge as the pool’s betting favorite and pushed total wagering for the year’s first two Derby pools past the $1 million mark.

Along with the strong fan support for Fountain of Youth (GII) winner Union Rags as the horse most likely to win the 138th running of the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (Grade I) at Churchill Downs on Saturday, May 5, there was substantial backing during the final hours of the pool for reigning 2-year-old champion Hansen, who rebounded from an upset loss in Gulfstream Park’s Holy Bull (GIII) to notch an impressive victory on Saturday in the $400,000 Gotham (GIII) at New York’s Aqueduct.

The mutuel field, which is made up of all 3-year-old Thoroughbreds other than the 23 individual horses in each KDFW Pool and known to many fans simply as the “All Others” bet, was a narrow 3-1 bettors choice when Pool 2 wagering closed on Sunday at 6 p.m. (Eastern). Union Rags, the Michael Matz-trained son of Dixie Union, was close behind at 4-1. The eye-catching gray Hansen, trained by Mike Maker, was the 9-1 third choice and the only other individual horse among the pool’s 24 betting interests in single-digit odds at the conclusion of betting.

Kentucky Derby fans wagered $411,368 in $2 win and exacta bets during the second Kentucky Derby Futures pool, which has been the smallest of the three betting pools every year since the bet was introduced in 1999, and that total pushed total Derby Future betting in 2102 to $1,042,672. The betting figure in the just-completed pool was the third-largest Pool 2 total in the 14-year history of the bet and it marked just only the fourth time the pool’s wagering had $400,000. The 2012 pool attracted win betting of $299,574 and $$111,794 in exacta wagering.

The Kentucky Derby Future Wager annually offers fans opportunities to bet on candidates for the $2 million-guaranteed Kentucky Derby, America’s greatest race and one of the world’s premier sporting events, weeks in advance of Churchill Downs’ famed 1 ¼-mile classic for 3-year-old Thoroughbreds. Derby Future bettors receive odds that are in place at the conclusion of betting in each betting pool, and the odds could be significantly higher and more attractive than those available on the same horses if they make it into the starting gate for the Kentucky Derby.

Other notable individuals that attracted significant fan support over the three days of the second Kentucky Derby Futures pool included Norfolk (GI) winner Creative Cause (#5, 17-1), Withers (GIII) winner Alpha (#1, 19-1), Robert B. Lewis (GII) winner I’ll Have Another #12, 22-1) and Sham (GIII) winner Out of Bounds (#17, 23-1).

The final Kentucky Derby Future Wager pool of 2012 is scheduled for March 30-April 1.